Abba
by ArtistKurai
Summary: Future fic! Tali calls her father Abba, just as her mom taught her. But when a friend at school points out that nobody else calls their dad Abba, Tali thinks she's doing something wrong. Tony quickly puts his little girl's fears to rest.


A/N: Alrighty! I'm venturing into a new realm today. Actually, I'm not new to NCIS by any means. I been watching it for at least six years. But this is only the second NCIS fic I've ever written, so please be kind. Also, it wasn't easy trying to find Hebrew terms of endearment, so if I got anything wrong, PLEASE correct me! Please! I'm a stickler for language accuracy, so I want my terms and term usages to be as accurate as possible.

Disclaimer: I wish I owned Tony and Tali! How precious are they!

* * *

"Bye, Motek," Tony DiNozzo called from the car as his five-year-old daughter Tali ran toward her teacher, who was waiting outside for her. 

"Bye, Abba," Tali returned with a sweet grin. She waved behind her one more time before she got to the front door of the school. Assured that his daughter was safe, Tony got back in the car and drove away, headed to work. 

"Hi, Emmy," Tali called to one of her classmates. The little girl turned to her friend. 

"Why don't you call your dad Dad or Daddy?" Emmy asked without greeting. 

Tali paused at the question. "What?" she asked, not understanding what the other girl meant. 

"You don't call your dad Dad or Daddy," Emmy explained. "Everybody else does, but why don't you? That's not normal." 

Little Tali didn't answer. She couldn't answer. Had she done something wrong? She didn't think she had. She'd called her father Abba her whole life. Though she couldn't remember her, Tali knew that her mom had called Tony her abba before she died. Tony even called himself Abba when around her. So what was wrong? This thought would not leave Tali, and it left her sullen for the rest of the day. 

Tony was excited to pick up Tali that afternoon. Tali had been begging for a puppy for the last couple of months, and he had finally gotten her one. The little dog was waiting for her back at their apartment, and Tony couldn't wait to show it to her. As he walked up to the front door of the school, his eyes scanned for his daughter, and found her sitting against the wall with the rest of her class. "Tali," he called to her. When the little girl looked up, Tony was surprised to see her looking far less cheerful than usual. "Ready to go home?" he asked. 

Tali just stood and started walking to their car, not even giving her father a glance. Tony turned and fell into step next to her. "Everything okay, Motek?" he tried to get her attention. But Tali still didn't answer. Figuring his little girl might need a little space, Tony didn't bug her about her mood. Instead, he decided to tell her about her surprise. 

"Hey, Motek, I got a surprise waiting for you at home," he tried. Tali glanced up at him in the mirror, but nothing more. "What's the matter, Tali? You okay?" Tali just shrugged, looking back down at her hands folded in her lap. "Don't you want to know what your surprise is?" Tali still didn't answer. Having been her father for the past three years, Tony had gotten pretty good at reading his daughter and her mannerisms. Something was bothering his baby girl. 

It was a short drive to their apartment, and when Tony unbuckled Tali from her seat, she walked slowly toward the door to their building without a word. "Hey, Tali," Tony said softly, hating that downtrodden look on Tali's face and determined to do something about it. He knelt down in front of her and took her tiny hands into his own. "Talk to me, baby girl. What's bugging you?" 

"Nothing's bugging me, Daddy," she said dejectedly. 

Tony wasn't expecting that response. "D-daddy?" he questioned. "Why'd you call me daddy? You call me Abba." 

Tali's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "Emmy said most people call their daddy Dad or Daddy, but I don't call you either of those. Am I doing something wrong?" 

Tears welled in Tony's eyes at the hurt in his baby's voice and the tears in her own eyes. "No, Motek, you did absolutely nothing wrong. I love that you call me Abba." 

"But Emmy said it wasn't normal," Tali argued. "Everybody either says daddy or dad. But I'm different." 

"You are just perfect the way you are," Tony assured her. "Do you know why you call me Abba?" Tali shook her head. "Because your Ima was from Israel, and in Israel, everybody speaks Hebrew. You were also born in Israel, just like Ima. Ima is Hebrew for mommy, and Abba is Hebrew for daddy." 

"Really?" Tali's big eyes lit up. She loved hearing stories about her mom, especially when her daddy told them. 

"Yep," Tony confirmed with a fond smile. "I loved your Ima very much. I still do. And she told you about me when you were a baby. In fact, the first thing you ever called me was Abba. And I haven't wanted you to call me anything else since then." 

"But what about Emmy and the other kids?" asked Tali. "She said it wasn't normal. What if they laugh at me?" 

A sad smile made Tony's lips twitch. "If you really want to call me Daddy, I would love for you to call me Daddy. But don't do it just because the other kids do. I'd much rather you call me Abba and be happy and yourself than call me Daddy just so you can be like everybody else. You're too special for that, Motek." 

Tali thought for a moment, then looked her father in the eye. "Okay, Abba," she said, giving Tony a big, happy grin. She threw her arms around his neck and squeezed him tight. 

Tony thought he was going to start sobbing then and there, but he didn't want to worry Tali. "You sure you want to call me Abba?" he asked. "It won't hurt my feelings if you call me Daddy." 

Tali pulled away and nodded her head. "I'm sure. Everybody has a daddy, right? But I'm the only one that has an Abba." 

Tony couldn't have been more proud of his little Tali than he was in that moment as he hugged her to him again. "I love you, Motek," he said gently as he swayed from side to side. 

"I love you, too, Abba."

* * *

A/N: Oh, the cute! I seriously wish we could see more Tony and Tali. Maybe they'll make a cameo appearance or two in future seasons! One can dream, right? From what I've researched, Motek is a Hebrew endearment meaning sweetness or sweetie. Again, if I'm wrong, please correct me so I can amend my story. Thanks for reading, and don't forget to review!


End file.
